Powell Could Be The Next Fed Chair, Sources Say

Jerome H. Powell, a governor on the board of the Federal Reserve System, will be nominated the next Fed chairman.

WASHINGTON — Janet Yellen might not return for another term as Federal Reserve chair, as President Donald Trump is expected to name Jerome H. Powell as the next chairman of the Fed, according to a report in The New York Times.

Trump is expected to make an official announcement later this week. He hasn't made a final decision and could change his mind, sources said.

Powell has been a Fed governor since 2012. He is a Republican who has steadily supported the Fed’s current approach to monetary policy and financial regulation, creating an expectation that he would bring continuity to the role.

If Trump decides not to give Yellen another term, he would break with longstanding precedent. Every Fed chairman in modern history who completed a first term was nominated for a second. The last three Fed chairman were nominated for new terms by a president of the opposite party.

Powell worked as an investment banker before joining the Treasury Department under President George H.W. Bush. He then made a fortune at the Carlyle Group, a private equity firm, before leaving to work at the Bipartisan Policy Center as an expert on fiscal policy. He was nominated to the Fed by President Barack Obama in 2012.

Susan Rupe is managing editor for InsuranceNewsNet. She formerly served as communications director for an insurance agents' association and was an award-winning newspaper reporter and editor. Contact her at Susan.Rupe@innfeedback.com. Follow her on Twitter @INNsusan.